Forestnet Media Podcast

Why John Deere Is Betting Big on Automated Forestry

Mary Pat Tubb never planned on running John Deere’s global forestry division. She got there through a mix of unexpected turns, a bad fit in design engineering, and a strong pull toward solving problems on the factory floor. In this episode, we sit down with Mary Pat Tubb, VP of Global Forestry at John Deere, live at the Oregon Logging Conference. She shares her path from a small town in Wisconsin to leading one of the most recognized brands in the world, and what the industry may be missing about the next generation. We also get into what’s happening right now. An aging workforce. Fewer operators. Tariffs putting pressure on margins. And the impact on the communities built around logging.

Why The Mega Fires Crisis Will Only Get Worse

British Columbia is sitting on a wildfire ticking time bomb, and simply ignoring the forests will not put out the flames. Retired forester and "BC is Burning" director Murray Wilson exposes the brutal reality of this crisis, breaking down everything from the government hiding massive carbon emissions to the bureaucratic red tape that bankrupts small mill towns. By refusing to actively manage our forests, we have traded a thriving forestry industry for uncontrollable mega-fires that threaten our homes, our economy, and our future. Is it too late to prevent more massive wildfires in BC?

The Forestry Machine Made From A Tank | KMC Max

The tank-inspired forestry machine is BACK. Well, technically an APC, but still. Alex and Alejo didn't just acquire a brand. They flew to a remote Canadian town, bet on forgotten technology built from Vietnam War tank DNA, and moved manufacturing to Uruguay to take it global. The KMC Max isn't a forestry machine. It's not a firefighting machine. It's a platform, and that distinction is exactly why these two think they've cracked a problem the mainstream brands refuse to solve. We get into the brutal economics of why "build-to-purpose" is failing contractors, how a company from one of the world's smallest countries is muscling into North American markets, and why the worst market conditions in years might actually be the perfect storm to relaunch a legend.

Why This Mill Survives When Others Don't | Bhavjit Thandi, Richmond Plywood

'Making forestry sexy again' That’s the bold mission Bhavjit Thandi is on as the new face of Richmond Plywood. Most CFOs stay in the boardroom, but 38-year old Bhavjit Thandi hit the mill floor on day one to understand the 70-year-old employee-owned co-op where workers take out mortgages just to get in. We dive into how this "shareholders on the floor" co-op model powers a zero-waste juggernaut that invests millions in automation and hiring more workers while other mills go dark. Expect hot takes on the dangerous "gray market" imports threatening Canadian construction and the brutal reality of battling the world's most expensive fiber costs. Bhavjit pulls no punches on government red tape, the Trump factor, and why Richply refuses to shut down even when demand tanks.

Stanley Park’s Looper Moth Crisis: The Other Side of the Story

This episode explains how wildfire risk in British Columbia is shaped by both climate trends and a century of fire suppression, and what that means for urban forests, hazard abatement and provincial policy. In conversation with Bruce Blackwell, M.Sc [http://M.Sc]., R.P.F., R.P.Bio [http://R.P.Bio]., Principal of Blackwell Consulting Ltd., we cover frontline experience from the Stanley Park hemlock looper response to municipal wildfire mitigation and watershed risk work. You’ll hear practical, sector‑relevant analysis on tools and constraints: when thinning or prescribed burning is appropriate, the economics and technology gaps for recovering small‑diameter biomass, how conservation reserves can still require active mitigation, and why provincial policy (stumpage, AAC assumptions and regulatory design) matters for competitiveness and long‑term resilience.